HTC One was scheduled to get Android 4.4.2 update (KitKat) before the end of January according to a 90 day deadline set by HTC for itself. The company has been doing admirably well in rolling out the update to most of the parts in the world, but it seems like the KitKat update is not going to make it to the One in US on time.

Android 4.4 update to be delayed for HTC One

Jason MacKenzie, President of HTC Americas, took to a press release to say “we won’t miss by much”, adding that it should only be a week or two before the updates are complete. MacKenzie states that the updates are in certification stage, which is to say that the carriers have their hands on the updates now. This normally means a matter of days until the update will land in consumers’ hands.

HTC have been remarkably transparent regarding the update process in the last few months, starting off by outlining the deadlines to give customers a rough idea of when to expect their upgrade. Next, they shared an infographic with the world that explained exactly how updates work with carriers – something which had mostly been a mystery until that point. Now, they also have an update status page, so that those who are itching to get KitKat can check the exact progress of the update for their particular device and carrier.

These are moves that MacKenzie is proud of, and talks about in his press release. Whilst the company has indeed missed their self-imposed deadline at the last second, Jason admits that “the software development process does not always follow a linear path”, and goes on to say how the challenge has “taught us a lot that will allow us to improve on our upgrade delivery in the future”. It’s good to see Jason continue to be honest and transparent with customers.

Check out the full letter below, and let us know if you’re still waiting for KitKat!

Team HTC One,

We’ve always been inspired by our customers, and because of our legacy as a pioneer of smartphones, we are fortunate to have the most technology-savvy, discerning, and passionate customers in the industry. While we continue to be a leader in Android innovation and have done “OK” with software updates, we recognize that “OK” is not good enough.

Starting with Android 4.3 (Jelly Bean) last year, we set out to be a leader in delivering the latest software and were successful in quickly rolling out Jelly Bean for the HTC One. With the release of Android 4.4 (KitKat), we embarked on a mission to push KitKat to our HTC One customers across the US and Canada within 90 days of Google’s official release of the software.

Additionally, we felt it was important to be as transparent with you as possible, which is why we launched the Software Update page to let everyone know how the process works, and to keep you up-to-date with our progress. We’re excited by the conversation this has generated in the HTC community.

As we approach the 90-day mark, we are getting closer to delivering KitKat and the finish line is becoming more clear. We are currently in the certification phase across all of our carrier partners in North America and they share our enthusiasm for getting this software in your hands. That said, the software development process does not always follow a linear path and we know today that we will miss our self-imposed target. The good news is that we won’t miss by much as it shouldn’t be more than one to two weeks to complete each of the carrier versions of HTC One.

The challenge we gave our teams, in cooperation with our carrier partners, has taught us a lot that will allow us to improve on our upgrade delivery in the future. We remain resolved to provide timely updates and to be transparent about the process and status of our efforts. Support of our customers is a major priority for us and we thank you for your support of HTC!

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About David Quinn

David is a writer and developer from London, and a huge fan of technology. When he's not obsessively watching the news, writing about or tinkering with Android, he's probably fixing something that he's broken.

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